CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Background to the study According to the (UN - Habitat 2006.P.3), among the key challenges resulting from rapid urbanization in developing countries is how to provide adequate levels of public infrastructure and services for the increasing urban population. This challenge is compounded by the fact that most of this rapid urbanization is taking place informally. Inadequate water supply, poor sewerage disposal, uncollected solid waste, poor drainage systems, illegal development of land and the proliferation of informal housing without inadequate provision of basic infrastructure facilities are some of the negative effects of urbanization. Therefore, for those organizations and individuals charged with service delivery in urban areas, a key challenge will be keeping up with the rapid pace of urban population growth. Zambia is one of the countries with the lowest water supply and sanitation coverage in the world. Only 14.9% and 39.2% people have access to proper sanitation facilities and access to safe water supply respectively (GRZ.2002.P.2). With regards to urban water supply and sanitation, it is confronted by many problems that require urgent redress if the growing demand resulting from increased urbanization is to be met. Therefore, there is an ever increasing demand for water and sanitation services in cities such as Kitwe and the problem of service delivery is a serious one. With this background in view, this paper attempts to understand the nature and extent of the inadequacies of water and sanitation service delivery and access in the high density areas of Kitwe. Statement of the problem Despite the existing structures in the provision of water and sanitation services in the high density areas of Kitwe, access to these services is very low. The Nkana Water and Sewerage Company and the Kitwe City Council, the service providers, do not seem to be meeting the demand for water supply, solid waste removal and sewerage services. The nature and extent of the inadequacy in water and sanitation service delivery in the high density areas of Kapoto, Chimwemwe, Buchi, Mulenga, Chipata and Wusakile still needs to be established. 1 Objectives of the study i) General Objective To investigate the nature and extent of the inadequacy of water and sanitation service delivery and access in the high density areas of Kitwe. ii) Specific Objectives a) To examine the nature of water supply in the high density areas of Kitwe. b) To investigate the nature and extent of the inadequacy in the provision of solid waste removal services in the high density areas of Kitwe. c) To assess the extent of the inadequate access to sewerage services in the high density areas of Kitwe. Rationale of the Study The nature and extent of the inadequacy in water and sanitation service delivery and access in Zambia has not been comprehensively studied and documented. Lack of such information and experience limits the mainstreaming of interventions to manage and address the problems especially in the high density areas. The prevailing situation that generates the existing conditions of the problem in urban areas is, if anything, is known in an isolated manner, yet such processes are perceived to work together in an integrated way. Particular elements of the inadequacies are an integral part of a holistic and dynamic relationship and therefore difficult to separate the problem of water supply, solid waste removal, access to sewerage services with problems of high population growth, housing conditions and governance issues. Without credible knowledge on this synergy, it is rather difficult to effectively address the problem. By providing more knowledge on this subject, it is possible to chart out more effective urban water and sanitation practices and systems which will be beneficial in a sustainable manner. Therefore, potential beneficiaries of the findings from the study are; policy makers, local authorities, service providers, various stakeholders, the communities and individuals at the household level. 2 Scope of the study In its pursuit to provide adequate water supply and sanitation services in high density areas, the central government, local authorities and various stakeholders are faced with the problem of how to meet demand and improve service delivery. With the rapid pace of urbanization taking place, more people being attracted to live in urban areas will remain without access to these services. The assumption of this study is to provide evidence on the nature and extent of the inadequacy of water and sanitation service delivery and access in the high density areas. Therefore, the preference of study is the fact that, the existing literature has not written much about this problem with a broad analysis of high density areas such as Kapoto, Chimwemwwe, Buchi, Mulenga, Chipata and Wusakile. Conceptual Framework Over the years, there has been debate on the best and most effective way to deliver basic services such as water and sanitation. However, despite many debates, the provision of such services should be about providing services that are affordable and adequate. Understanding the link among the various concepts that relates to water and sanitation service delivery is therefore, crucial. Some of the concepts that require defining include: urbanization, high density areas, municipal sanitation services, water supply, waste water and sewerage services and municipal solid waste management (MSWM). The others include those that affect access to service delivery which are accessibility, affordability, availability and quality. Urbanization, simply defined, is the shift from a rural to an urban society and involves an increase in the number of people living in urban areas. The forces, behind such are rural-urban migrations, natural population increase and the engulfing of peripheral rural settlements by urban expansion (Garth.2005. P.84). The effects of urbanization are very clear; as cities expand they give rise to both planned and unplanned high density areas. The planned high density areas are legally recognized unlike the unplanned high density areas (often known as informal settlements, slums, low-income areas and squatter settlements) (Herderson.2000.P.12). Despite their legal status, these residential areas have several characteristics in common. These include having undergone physical expansion in size with large populations residing in them. The residents living in these areas often lack access to adequate and affordable basic services such as water supply, solid waste collection and sewerage 3 services as well as other services such as storm water drainage, street lighting and roads (Renaund. 1981. P.45). Urbanization has impacted heavily in the delivery of three municipal sanitation services. The first is water supply, which involves the construction, operation and maintenance of public water systems, including production, acquisition and distribution of water to the general public for residential, commercial and industrial use (Manda.2007.P.56). However, the definition of water supply here has been limited to drinking water supply involving the collection, treatment and distributioin of water through a central water supply system for domestic use. The second municipal sanitation service is a wastewater sewage and treatment service which involves the collection of liquid waste collected from residential, commercial, and industrial areas and conveyed with a sewage system to a treatment plant (Kavimba.2002.P.45). However, in this thesis the definition only refers to the provision, operation and maintenance of sanitary and storm sewer systems, sewage disposal and treatment facilities. In the case of the high density areas of Kitwe where sewage systems are used, the wastewater is mainly the liquid waste collected from households and derived largely from the water supply. The third municipal sanitation service is municipal solid waste management (MSWM); the collection, removal and disposal of garbage, refuse, hazardous and other solid wastes. The provision of MSWM is often the role of the municipal or other governmental authorities though the private sector does provide the service for profit reasons (Gombya.2005.P.8). Synonymous to MSWM is the use of terms such as “garbage”, “trash”, “refuse” and “rubbish” which are categorized in seven groups. These categories which also has a profound effects on the technology to be used for collection and disposal are; residential (household or domestic waste), commercial, institutional, street sweeping, construction and demolition, sanitation and industrial wastes. However, MSWM in this dissertation is simply taken to imply domestic waste generated from households which consist of everyday items such as food, product packaging, grass clipping, furniture, clothing, bottles e.t.c. The provision of water and sanitation services is not enough, it also requires assessing accessibility. Accessibility has been taken to imply an assessment as to whether water and sanitation facilities are within the physical reach and accessible by members of a household. The proportion of households accessing piped water supply, solid waste removal and sewerage services have been investigated. In addition, this study has modified access to investigate 4 availability, affordability and quality. Affordability here has been taken to mean an assessment as to whether households are able to afford the costs (service charges). This concept is an important aspect of access because to the poor it signifies the poor circumstances as the consequence of poverty and it is this factor that causes the poor to be less able to access adequate services. For instance, the poor normally do not have secured income on a regular basis. The poor mostly obtain incomes on a daily basis, and thus daily purchase of water would suit them better rather than paying monthly bills and it can also result in them resorting to the use of hand dug wells as alternative sources of water (Garth, 2005.P.34). The availability of water and sanitation services is another concept that can be used to assess access. The human right to water is limited to availability and its use. Likewise, a sufficient number of sanitation facilities must be made available.